Karen Murrell Lipstick - Sugar Rush Swatches & Review

3 September 2014

Provided for review

Hey lovelies,

Good morning! Brightening hump day is this beautiful candy pink confection from Karen Murrell, their latest release: Sugar Rush! This just launched on the 1st of September, read on to find out what I thought about it.

I was very lucky to receive this lipstick for consideration from Bare PR and their packaging is just beautiful.

I love the artwork for Sugar Rush (each Karen Murrell lipstick has its own artwork, which is pretty cool!), the girl looks like she has candy floss for hair, which is pretty apt given the name of the lipstick! I've just noticed she has earrings on and dots on her dress and hair in the lipstick artwork but not on the promotional card - good to know I haven't lost my spot the difference skills!

Noel was particularly pleased by the inclusion of lollies with the PR parcel! We do have to be careful to avoid a sugar rush with him (dealing with the aftermath is not as fun as this lipstick), so into the toilet training reward jar they went, where they have been much enjoyed! He's almost done toilet training *fist pump*

Sugar Rush is a candy pink hue which can be applied sheerly (one swipe on the left) or built up (as I've done on the right). Karen Murrell suggests pairing Sugar Rush with 'matte foundation, strong winged eyes and a touch of Sugar Rush blended into the apples of your cheeks instead of blusher - smoking hot!' and I think the buildable opacity really lends itself well to that.

I tested Sugar Rush both as a lipstick and a blush in the photos you'll see below (adding big lashes, because reasons) and found that it wore really well as a blush. I just popped some on my cheeks straight from the tube and then blended it out with a stippling brush and it still looked lovely at the end of the day. It's quite subtle as a blush but could easily be built up.

For the lip swatch, I've applied Sugar Rush heavily as in the built up swatch above because opaque pink is my jam. You can see that it has good opacity, though it will tend to sink into liplines a teensy bit (although fortunately this didn't worsen as the day wore on) and emphasised a little dryness I missed when exfoliating. This is a pretty common feature for both paler hues and mattes, both of which I would class Sugar Rush as, so it's not unexpected. Nevertheless, it's a little annoying, so lip prep is a must.

Wear time was pleasantly good for a lighter shade, lasting for 4-5 hours. It was neither hydrating nor drying, very comfortable to wear, with a light cinnamon scent.

Wearing Sugar Rush on lips and cheeks

Of course Noel wanted to come help with pictures :) Please ignore the awkward arm!

Sugar Rush still visible on cheeks at the end of the day.

Karen Murrell lipsticks are a great option for any lippy lover, but particularly if you like to purchase natural, ecologically-friendly products - I covered this in my review of Rymba Rhythm, if you'd like to find out more. Karen Murrell is also cruelty free, double win! Speaking of, I've started labelling reviews for cruelty free brands to make it easier for those of you who use CF products to find them - check out the tag here.

4 comments

I really like the lipstick, although I find it doesn't look *that* bright on me, because my lips are quite red, if that makes sense. I loved the PR package too, the lollies were a perfect touch! Your photos always look so beautiful, it inspires me to try harder with mine.

Thanks Lena! You could try concealing your lips first if you wanted to get the colour to look more like this - I didn't, because my lip colour is fairly muted. When you're in Wellington I can show you my photo set up! It took a long time for me to get it the way I like and there are still things I'd like to tweak, but baby steps :)